ABSTRACT
By 1816 the Federalists could not even officially field a nominee. The Republicans held a congressional caucus in March 1816 and almost nominated William Crawford, a former u.s. senator from Georgia who was serving as Madison's treasury secretary. Many Republicans believed the popular Crawford was more capable than the other prospective nominee, Secretary of State J ames Monroe. At 60 years of age, Monroe had an extensive record of public service: Revolutionary War veteran, U.S. senator, minister to both France and Britain, twice governor of Virginia, secretary of war, and secretary of state. Despite his resume, he was stodgy and uninspiring. Still, President Madison supported his fellow Virginian, and the Republicans settled on him as their nominee and named New York Governor Daniel Tompkins as his running mate, resulting in a Virginia-New York ticket similar to that of the Jefferson and Madison administrations.
